Noach's Downfall
Student Summaries of Sichot of the Roshei
Yeshiva
Yeshivat Har Etzion
SICHA OF HARAV AHARON
LICHTENSTEIN SHLIT"A
upon the bar mitzva of their son Yeshaya Simcha.
Adapted
by Matan Glidai
Translated
by Kaeren Fish
A
plain reading of the biblical text conveys a very positive impression of Noach:
"Noach found favor in God's eyes" (6:8); "Noach was a righteous man; he was
perfect in his generation" (6:9); "For I have seen you to be righteous before Me
in this generation" (7:1). Nevertheless, Chazal elaborate at length on his
deficiencies. Rashi (6:9) notes that some Sages interpreted the phrase, "he was
perfect in his generation," in a negative light:
"In
comparison with his generation, he was righteous; were he to have lived in the
generation of Avraham, he would not have been regarded as anything
special."
The
verse describing how Noach entered the ark "because of the waters of the Flood"
(7:7) is similarly perceived as a criticism:
"Noach
was also one of those with little faith, believing and not believing that the
Flood would come. He did not enter the ark until the waters pressed against
him." (Rashi, quoting the midrash)
The
Gemara (Sanhedrin 108a) further asserts that the Divine decree as to the fate of
that generation applied to Noach too; however, since he found favor in God's
eyes, he was saved.
Thus,
the Sages demonstrate a clear tendency to criticize Noach and to detract from
his stature. This seems strange: after all, the Torah testifies explicitly to
the man's righteousness; there is no hint in the text at any reproach or
disfavor towards him. Why did Chazal see fit to project a different image of him
than the one reflected in the verses?
The
answer lies, apparently, in Noach's behavior after the Flood. When Noach exits
the ark, he acts properly and immediately offers sacrifices to God, in
thanksgiving for having been saved. God blesses Noach and his sons and forges a
covenant with them, promising that there will never be such a flood again. At
this point, Noach's relationship with God reaches its climax. But then the
situation suddenly starts deteriorating: Noach plants a vineyard, he drinks its
wine, and ends up wallowing, naked and helpless, in his
tent.
We
may point to two distinct stages in Noach's downfall. The first is, "Noach began
(va-yachel) to be a man of the land, and he planted a vineyard" (9:20). Rashi
quotes Chazal in the midrash, teaching that this verse conveys criticism: "The
word va-yachel' implies that he made himself profane (chullin). He should first
have planted some other kind of crop."
Noach
left the ark, and was met with a world completely destroyed. Upon his shoulders
rested the entire task of rebuilding. One might have expected that he would
quickly take care of the most basic necessities that the world needed: that he
would plant wheat, bake bread, build homes, etc. But instead of all of this,
Noach preferred to invest his time in planting a vineyard and producing
wine.
The
second stage, of course, was his inebriation. He drank more and more; failed to
stop himself in time, and thus degenerated to a complete loss of control. He
ended up naked and drunk in his tent, and was demeaned. Afterwards he rebuked
his youngest son, rather than admitting his own unworthy
behavior.
It
was this moral fall that appears to have led Chazal to lower their evaluation of
him even before the Flood. They concluded that if he was capable of degenerating
to such conduct, he could not have been so exceedingly righteous to start off
with; "his end testified to his beginning". The midrash (Bereishit Rabba 36, 4)
in fact states that Noach took vines into the ark with him, and it was these
that he planted after emerging. Thus, the idea of planting a vineyard had
blossomed in his mind even before the Flood.
Let
us try to analyze the reasons for Noach's downfall. Prior to the Flood, Noach
lived in an evil, corrupt environment. The entire world was immersed in violence
and sexual immorality. Despite this, Noach managed to remain righteous; he was
unaffected by what went on around him. He held open debates with people of his
generation, who did not believe that the Flood would come; he maintained his
views throughout. The knowledge that his opinion was unusual and special only
amplified his sense of mission and obligation, helping guard him from the
pressures of his surroundings and helping him distinguish between good and
evil.
After
the Flood, the situation was altogether different. Noach was no longer unusual;
he was now alone. Before him lay the huge task of rehabilitating the world.
There was no choice here between good and evil; rather, he faced a choice
between one good and another. What would be the best way to go about resettling
the world? Many things required rebuilding. Noach had to organize his
priorities: what needed to be done first, and what could be left for later? Here
he had to stand up only to himself, and in this he failed. Instead of seeing to
the most elementary, essential infrastructure, he planted a vineyard and became
drunk.
It
is significant that Noach's downfall was connected specifically to wine. Wine
has two aspects to it: on the one hand, it "makes man's heart joyful"; it brings
upliftment. It is no coincidence that specifically wine is used as the libation
offering upon the altar. On the other hand, wine can lead to the loss of
control, to foolishness and sin, to the point of losing one's "image of God". It
all depends on maintaining the proper proportions. When drinking wine, a person
has to set himself limits and to know when to stop. It was precisely in this
task that Noach failed.
In
popular literature from the Middle Ages, Noach was usually portrayed as a comic
figure, but in truth his story is a tragic one: a person who dealt heroically
with an entire wicked generation and prevailed over them, yet was not able to
prevail in his battle with himself. A man who was victorious over the whole
world was beaten by the bottle.
Sometimes
we suffer from the same problem: we know how to guard ourselves and deal with
outside elements that declare themselves opposed to all that is dear to us, but
we are not always successful in grappling with our own nature: in using our time
properly, in setting proper priorities and limits. Noach's downfall should teach
us to devote careful attention to this battle, too.
(This
sicha was delivered on leil Shabbat parashat Noach 5755
[1994].)
This website is constantly being improved. We would appreciate hearing from you. Questions and comments on the classes are welcome, as is help in tagging, categorizing, and creating brief summaries of the classes. Thank you for being part of the Torat Har Etzion community!